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Warren Bradley cleared

Will it signal the end of Liverpool's lengthiest chapter of political infighting? Plus that Standards Board judgement in full

Published on February 6th 2009.

LEE Forde, Jason Harborow, Mathew Street Festival cancellation, Peronigate...ah, them were the days. All the stuff that threatened to truly stuff Culture year, and all kicking off on the eve of 2008.

But, and many would say somewhat thankfully, after a year of relative peace and quiet on the political front, it's taken till now for anyone to decide if anyone did anything dodgy (in the ethical standards sense) or not.

Not in this case, the Standards Board for England have found, in their long-anticipated report into the alleged antics of City Council Leader Warren Bradley, namely complaints that he had bullied another person (Jason Harborow), failed to treat others with respect, and brought his office or authority into disrepute.

The board found that Cllr Bradley had, on one occasion, been "unwise and possibly naive", in meeting former city events manager Lee Forde (pictured below) , two days after the Mathew Street report was published, and his conduct "occasionally suggested lack of good judgement" in the wake of the Mathew Street Festival cancellation in 2007.

But it concluded that he had not acted maliciously and said no further action should be taken.

The investigation was launched in December 2007 into allegations that

Cllr Bradley and ex-council leader Mike Storey had secretly met former city events manager Lee Forde, who was blamed for the cancellation of the August 2007 Mathew Street festival to get information on former Culture Company chief executive Jason Harborow.

The investigation into Cllr Storey has already concluded that no action should be taken against him.

The probe was later widened to include claims that Cllr Bradley had bullied Jason Harborow.Cllr Bradley said: "I think it has been an absolute the disgrace the way I have been treated, not only by councillors and former officers, but also the Standards Board."

Is this public spatting all over yet? On that one, the jury is remains out. Anyway, here’s the judgement from the ethical watchdog body established by the Government to keep an eye on the behaviour of our elected servants, so crack open a Peroni and have a read.

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gosh what a revelation. scouse politicians who are as conniving, untrustworthy and dishonest as the people who elected them.....what a surprise.Only in Liverpool are theives, crooks, and murderous thugs admired and feted.This city gets the politicians it deserves.

So it is now alright to do whatever you want and behave however you like showing poor judgement and naievety or make statements to the press attacking one of your officers so long as it is when you are working under pressure. Does not seem to mention the complaint to the press commission when challenged about the meeting with Mr Forde that he denied and when he denied sending texts and messages which would suggest one may be more liberal with the truth than the other since it was later proven when copies of the texts and messages were published.This isn't a clearance of the appalling behaviour that clearly took place it is just a decision that the poor judgement and naievety was without malicious intent. Well we should all remember that line of defence. So if it was all so clear cut why has it taken so long and why again did it take so long from receiving the original findings to what has been released today. Any changes I wonder? Can we see the original please?

The only answer, I think is to get shut of the lot of them and start again. They are a shambolic rabble who are doing this city absolutely no good at all. It will never move forward while this little group of self interested egos are in charge, with their tittle tattling emails, their paranoia and their introspective immaturity. What next? There is a cancer in this city and it needs cutting out at the core, which is all about the politicos, the innefectual and whingeing Labour party opposition included.

you sick pig tofu. come to liverpool and we will give you what you deserve. we are not self pitying, it is unfair that scousers have been denied the same rights as southern tories. we deserve more for our creativity and local wit. How many towns in posh london could have created the beatles or jimmy tarbuck? not many i bet.

Knifeboy, don't worry old son. There is one spectaculary thick scouse baiter who comes onto the site with banal regularity every weekend, when I assume he/she is let out of the locked room. It really isn't anything to stress about, for that is clearly what is wanted.

Is it any wonder this city is stagnating, as per warnings from Centre for Cities think tank. The goings on that go on at the city council surpass the impossible escapes Buster Crabbe managed when playing Flash Gordon in the Saturday morning matinees at the Gaumont.

reluctance to engage in debate is what has led liverpool down the path of ruin. too many idle scousers sit back expecting the world to owe them a living. Hard luck - the world has marginalised the underachieving scouser and their selfpitying criminal history.

And the lesson in all of this? Don't tangle with a firefighter. Blazes Bradley - or maybe Battlin' Biggles as Warren's boyhood hero was the plucky, daredevil cartoon airman - is clearly well used to getting stuck in with axe and hose and dousing the most ferocious of infernos. And of course it is the flames that have 'malicious intent', Blazes and his brave pals are merely there to stamp out the danger and dampen down the trouble spots. And a damn fine job he and his fellow Followers of Denis make of it. The sheer nerve of folk thinking that he might have not treated others with respect. Respect is what Blazes understands only to well as he faces the conflagration on a daily basis. Oh, what torment he has been put through by those who fail to understand the pressure of being constantly vigil in case of a carelessly discarded fag end or a renegade glowing ember. And that's not withstanding his other firefighting role as the leader of one of Britain's most dynamic and culturally swish cities. Shame on those of you who think he might even vaguely ponder anything dodgy; as if, with former leader Mike Storey there at his shoulder to tip the wink, as they say. This judgement will surely show the insurrectionary rabble who's really in charge. So, my dear Scouse scamps, follow Blazes to even greater glories as Liverpool must surely - and finally - acknowledge, as the dotty American poet Allen Ginsberg once intoned, that it is indeed the Centre of the Known Universe, or words to that effect. To horse, my beloved scamps, and pray there is a fair wind for France!

I do like that teal colour when you go to the "judgment". Or is it duck egg blue? It looks very nice with the Heritage Yellow background. I'm thinking of decorating my bathroom soon and this could be just the way forward. Thanks Confidential!

Wow these Scouse baiters don't give up do they? You have to admire their persistance. To counter that you do have to pity their lack of intelligence, wit, dignity and humility. They are not worthy of engaging in a debate.

Members of the Council have every right to have a go at officers in the Council. Members are Accounable through the ballot box Officers are not. the breed of Officer involved were doing things off their own bat with out telling members,and they deserve to be used as a punch bag.All the bad press over this and all the other Mucky Stories ran by the defuct Daily (Sheep Shaggers) post were due to Officers not informing members of what they are doing